Is The Hundred really a monstrosity as it is being made out to be?

The Hundred is the latest form of cricket that has been spawned where else but England, the birthplace of all the different forms of cricket played internationally, and otherwise. The only exception to this is T10 that was created in the UAE (United Arab Emirates) – or Abu Dhabi, to be more precise. Now The Hundred promises several new rules and regulations – or acts of innovations, as its founders would rather want them to be anointed. You have sets of 5 balls each. A bowler can bowl 2 sets on the trot if she or he wants to. A batter cannot cross with another one while the latter is getting out. Once a wicket falls it always has to be a new batter at the crease.?

ECB (England Cricket Board) has stated that this form has been designed keeping in mind the demographic that is not otherwise interested in the game. This means that it wants to draw in more women and kids to the game so that cricket can become the complete family entertainer that football is.

So, what are the general opinions about it so far?

As may be expected in such cases, ECB has stood steadfastly behind its protégé like a mother guarding her newborn kid against the world and aiming to filter all the negativity being directed towards it. However, such enthusiasm has not been reciprocated elsewhere.?

There are plenty of experts, including some of the most revered cricket writers in England and around the cricketing world as such, who have stated how unwelcome this newest form of the game is. Let us discuss and try to analyze if they are right or not.?

This is a sign that ECB has devalued first-class cricket?

They have stated this particular tournament is a reflection of how ECB has devalued first-class cricket (or red-ball cricket, as it is also known as these days) at the expense of winning in the limited-over (or white-ball cricket, if you will) games.?

Are they right?

It is hard to argue with most of what has been said over here. The condition of the first-class cricket in England can be seen in the continued woeful displays of especially the batters in the tests, especially at home. If we look back at the Ashes that came after the heady success of the 2019 World Cup win, the team has found it hard to put up big totals consistently with Joe Root and Ben Stokes being the only exceptions. The bowling is in rude health though especially in the quick bowling department where there are so many capable performers. However, batting is an important part of test matches as bowling is in white-ball cricket. This is one area where England has been found wanting time and again.

Much of the blame, in this case, can be laid at the door of County cricket where the wickets and the general level of bowling are not conducive for the development of batsmen. Mo Bobat, the Performance Director of ECB, has stated how the average speed of pace bowling in County cricket is around 130 kmph (kilometre per hour), which is nowhere near the international standard. Even the aged James Anderson tends to bowl 140 clicks when the situation calls for it these days. So, playing such pace does not prepare you for the rigour of international cricket in any way. You can always try playing the bowling machine but they are perhaps not the right way to get ready to face an international fast bowler who can swing and seam it at a high pace.?

The wickets over here are either dustbowls, by their standards, or green carpets. This means that the bowlers are not facing any examination where they are forced to develop new skills. On the other hand, the batters are not developing the temperament needed to play long innings in test cricket in first-class cricket. This is because they know that all their good work done in buckling down can be undone at any moment with even the most innocuous ball, which could misbehave because of the pitch. They are always on the edge, which is not exactly helping matters. The blame for such substandard wickets cannot be placed entirely on the door of ECB. The counties must share a significant portion of the same as well.?

ECB has also stopped the Lions programme. No longer do you have those shadow squads traveling with the main team and playing with the various first-class sides on the away tours. This has further blunted the development of English youngsters. They are also not asking the touring teams to bring their A teams to play with their Lions team. Perhaps, Corona is the latest excuse for this. So, through all these steps it has made quite clear that its priorities lie elsewhere.

The arrival of The Hundred is just a major nail on that coffin.

The counties are to be blamed for this nadir

Some have blamed the administrators of the counties for this nadir. They have stated that this would kill County cricket and make it irrelevant forever. In fact, the 50-over competition is already being staged at this time as well. The experts have pointed out how it has become a second XI competition thanks to all the best cricketers being made available to the Hundred. As we have said already, it is the counties that prepare the wickets. So, a lot of the blame for the lack of technique and temperament among the young batters as well as bowlers should be apportioned to them. They are preparing result-oriented pitches for their success and that is hampering the overall game over there.??

They could have made a few changes to the T20 tournament instead of introducing the tournament

Ian Chappell, one of the best captains and minds to have graced the game, has stated that ECB could have achieved what it wanted to by just making a few changes to the existing Vitality T20 Blast.?

It must also be said in this context that the Vitality T20 Blast has been quite a successful one. This is especially evident in the smaller centres where these games have received great attendance and where the people follow the game more closely than those in the test centres. The counties enjoy more passionate and fervent support in these parts. So, maybe the ECB administrators could have done something to cash in on the popularity like securing TV deals to televise all the games. Maybe the counties could have worked themselves with the local TV stations so that at least their games could be shown on TV.

They could have started their own TV channels as so many football clubs in England do. The thing is there is a lot that they could have done if they wanted to, to make sure that the County game reached more homes through television. This is one area where The Hundred has an advantage of sorts since all the games are being shown on TV, which means a lot more eyeballs and more sponsors, which guarantees more revenue.?

Conclusion

However, this does not mean that this tournament would not serve any purpose or would not be beneficial at all. Back when IPL (Indian Premier League) was launched in 2008 a lot of the same things were said but India today is one of the most successful performers in world cricket. A lot of the credit needs to be given to the way BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) has used the money it made from the tournament and invested it in developing the game from the grassroots level. It invested in NCA (National Cricket Academy) and the A-team. The fruits of such labour are now there for all to see.

ECB needs to emulate this as well. It has to prioritize first-class cricket and maybe the money it makes from The Hundred would help it significantly in that regard. The counties too need to play their part in this regard as they would be getting their share of the revenue from the tournament as well. They have to find ways to be self-sustainable and develop the game further by providing proper conditions for them to develop in every way imaginable. If all these conditions can be met maybe then The Hundred would not prove to be such a bane after all, as the experts expect it to be!